Chapter I

It was like a dream come true to have been picked, out of the many applicants, as an Associate Attorney for one of the biggest law firms in New York City. Not only had she worked her entire life to reach her goals, Hailee Foster worked to escape the small town she had grown up in. Everything was falling right into place with her life plan, minus the fact she was homeless. Residing in a hotel for the time being, Hailee did what she could to find that perfect apartment that screamed 'home' to her. She had placed fliers around her work building and began placing fliers up at the laundry mat she frequented. The whirling sounds of the machines working hummed through the pale white facility, the luminescent lights bright. The blonde's arm was extended, thumbing a paper onto the corkboard on top of the many other advertisements placed on the bulletin.

"Looking for an apartment?" The voice took her by surprise – she hadn't heard anyone over the loud hum of the machines. Turning to face the man, Hailee nodded his way with a polite smile.

"Yeah, I'm kind of sick of living out a hotel," she spoke, creating conversation.

"I have a place available; I mean, I have to renovate it a bit but it'll be ready soon if you can wait a few more days?" Her expression quickly changed from shock to gratuitous before her head quickly bobbed up and down.

"Uh-yeah I can definitely check it out. I'm Hailee, by the way," she introduced, extending her hand for him to shake.

"Max." He followed suit, taking her small hand in his. "Let me write down the address for you and you can come by in two days?" Handing him the pen she kept on hand at all times, Hailee watched as he wrote down the address on one of the fliers she had been carrying. While his attention was pulled to the paper, her gaze stayed with him. His handsome features captured her; kind of like a hot carpenter. She assumed he was a hard-worker as his hands were stained with paint smudges, along with his pants, and his shirt had had a few holes and dirt.

Jumping at the opportunity laid on her lap, Hailee made moves to check out the area and building after work that day. Stepping out from the bus, the woman looked up to the building, her eyes squinting from the sun's bright rays reflecting from the windows. Using her hand as a shield, Hailee walked up the few steps and immediately opened the front door.

It was eerily quiet inside the building, almost as if it was vacant or abandoned. "Hello?" Hailee called out, searching for anyone, her voice echoing down the dark corridor. Despite her gut instinct telling her to turn around, she walked to the elevator and rose to the second floor where the alleged available apartment was located. Once she set foot in the hallway, that's when she heard an existence of someone. Walking over to where she heard the noise she noticed the door was opened – the sound radiating from inside.

"Hello?" she called out again, pushing open the door. Her heels clicked against the hardwood floors as she searched for the noise. Finding it, Hailee witnessed a man sanding the floors, a mask over his face to protect from the wood chipping flying in all directions. "Excuse me!" the woman called out, waving her hand to try and grab his attention. A few more attempts and she finally got it; the man hesitated before removing the mask from his face, the machine quieting. It was Max, which in turn forced a polite smile on her face.

He surely was handsome – a handsome man who obviously knew a thing or two on fixing things. For a brief moment she wondered how callused his hands were and how they would feel trailing along her arms. "Uh – hi, sorry I thought you said two days?" she questioned, taking a step closer. "Just wondering where this apartment is?"

"You're standing in it," he told her sternly. Creating an 'oh' form with her lips, she looked around. There was no way she would be able to afford such an apartment; it was beautiful, vintage but with just the right modern to keep it looking top notch. "It's obviously not ready yet, my apologies, but give me another day or two and the floors will be done."

"I-I can't afford something like this," Hailee pointed out with a small shake of her head.

"It's twelve hundred a month," he informed her with a nod. Her hesitation was obvious as she watched the dimples form in his cheeks.

"What's the catch?" Being a Junior Associate, Hailee knew there had to be something wrong with the place if he was willing to bring the value of the apartment down just for her. Beckoning for her to follow him, Hailee obliged.

"It's an older house so the pipes rattle and there are bumps in the night; cell service sucks. Also, we're located right next to the F train so all the windows and everything in the bathroom shakes." Just as he spoke, the F train came around, rattling the windows and shaking the objects on the bathroom sink. "Besides that this place is pretty quiet. I just need to rent it out as soon as possible. Oh and utilities aren't included."

"It's perfect," Hailee blurted out with a wide smile.

"I'll need first month's rent and security deposit up front and two references," the owner said with a smile, slightly taken back by the woman's enthusiasm.

"I can get that to you tomorrow morning before I go to work." Max looked her over, a small grin tugging at the corner of his lips. Reaching into his pockets, he pulled out a set of keys. Seeing this Hailee's eyes widened once again as she grabbed them. "But you haven't even gotten called my references – nor did I give you the money."

"I have a feeling I can trust you," Max replied. And that he could.

The next day Hailee rushed to the building with the money in cash and a list of her references for the owner. He happily received the money and showed off the newly finished apartment. It seemed he worked tirelessly throughout the night so she could move in as soon as possible. This pleased her and informed him she would be moving in the next day as she needed to give her boss a heads up.

When the day finally came for her to move into her new apartment, Hailee smiled up at the building as the moving men worked to haul her boxes and belongings into the second floor home. Max stood at her front door when the men left, a smile on his face and a bottle of champagne as a present. "That's so sweet of you," Hailee chimed with a matching smile, her hand wrapping around the neck of the bottle. "Everything is still in boxes but do you want to come in to crack it open?" Max nodded and moved to enter the apartment as Hailee stepped aside to allow him room.

"So where did you move from?" he questioned, his hands sliding in his front pockets. "Your accent isn't one I'm familiar with."

"I moved from a little town in Pennsylvania; the accent you hear is probably a hint of Pennsylvania Dutch since I've been around it my whole life." Hailee moved to the kitchen, her thin white shirt sticking to her from the still moist sweat. Pulling two wine glasses from a box, Hailee set them on the island and immediately opened the bottle.

"Is that what you are? Dutch?"

"No, I'm Italian actually. My parents are both from Italy but decided to move to the States."

"Do you go visit family there?"

"Every now and then. It's not all that it's cracked up to be honestly."

"I guess when you've visited enough times it loses its value." Hailee nodded in agreement, handing him a filled glass.

"To new opportunities," she toasted, holding up her own glass. Max followed suit, his eyes never leaving hers. She wasn't sure what it was, maybe it was the fact she hadn't been laid in such a long time, but Hailee couldn't help but stare back. His closed lip smirk intrigued her – his peppered beard moving along with his facial muscles as he spoke, the dimples pooling his his cheeks, asking yet another question about herself. "I'm sorry, what?" she questioned, her head shaking away the inappropriate thoughts.

Max chuckled, placing the glass on the island. "I asked where you work," he repeated.

"Oh; Duncan, Howard and Kline. It's a big executive law firm working for big corporate businesses." Hailee took another sip from her glass after answering his question, swirling the liquid in her mouth before swallowing. "So if you hear me up late at night or see my light on its 'cause I'm working on some big case." It was no secret Hailee thought a little more highly of herself after getting the job offer; working for some of the most powerful attorneys in New York definitely had that kind of effect on a person. The woman, once feeling menial and small in her hometown, finally felt powerful and bigger than ever working in a male driven industry.

Max nodded her way, obviously impressed with her line of work. Seeing a woman her size and statute – he wouldn't have guessed she was an attorney but rather a waitress, maybe even a librarian. Suddenly the thought of her in a pencil skirt, dark blouse and glasses popped into his mind, causing a bit of a stir within himself. "I suffer a bit from insomnia so I'm sure I'll come down every now and then. Maybe you can bounce off ideas and I can act like I know what you're talking about." Hailee laughed at this, her smile lingering for a moment longer.

"I'd like that." Finishing the champagne, Hailee looked at the time and realized it was time to get ready for bed. "Thank you again for the welcoming gift; I appreciate it." Max offered a grateful nod and made his way toward the door, the blonde following behind him.

"Get some rest," he instructed, waving a goodbye. Closing the door behind him, Hailee placed her back against the wooden barrier, a soft breath escaping her lips as her eyes scanned all the boxes still needed to be rampaged through.

Instead she opted to run herself a bath and get ready for bed. Moving toward her bathroom, Hailee switched on the hot and cold water, allowing for more hot than cool to fill the porcelain tub. Stripping off her sweat stained clothing, she grabbed her Bluetooth speaker and hooked her iPhone to it. You're Special by NF vibrated through the bathroom, her naked body swaying along with the music as she waited for the tub to fill up. Unbeknownst to her, she had an audience.

Peeping through the hole located by the tub, Max had slithered his way through the inside of the walls, taking a seat, flashing light in hand. His body rocked back and forth as he watched Hailee lower herself into the tub, only her head and bare shoulders visible from where he was sitting. "Goddamn it," he whispered to himself, briefly taking his gaze from her. He wanted to see more of her, to inspect all visible crevices of her but was impossible to do with her fully in the tub.

The man's callused hands hovered over her waist, making its way down toward her area. A low moan vibrated in her throat, her lips parting to invite his tongue in. Rubbing his way between her folds through her panties, she felt him smile in their kiss. "Is that all for me?" he whispered, his voice deep and husky; making her shiver underneath his touch.

"All for you daddy," the woman panted, her fingernails scraping on the bed, bunching the sheets in her fists. Little by little she felt his lips place butterfly kisses down her torso, on her waist, and down to her hip bones.

"Tell me how much you want it," he commanded, his fingers leaving her heat and pulling at the elastic of her panties.

"I want it all." Those words were enough for the man to slid her underwear to the side, his face nearing her area. Simply feeling his breath against her wetness made her head spin; she bucked her hip, moving closer to him.

"Ah-ah. You get it when I say so," he spoke authoritatively. Without warning, his tongue slipped against her folds, nesting its way closer to her clit. She moaned, her fingers instinctively tangling within his dark hair.

"Fuck, Max!"

As the blonde slumbered, her chest quickly bobbed up and down from her dream, loud tired moans escaping her slightly parted mouth. While she slept, Hailee mumbled one name - a name the house owner was able to hear as he watched from her closet. A smirk began to tug at the corner of his lips; this was going to be easier than he expected.

Author's Note: So this is my first fic including smut in it so I hope I do it justice. I've been completely obsessed with JDM lately and figured i do a fic that didn't involve Negan like everyone else but of Max. If you enjoyed this, please give it a follow and/or a review! anything encouraging could help speed up the process for the second chapter!